The American Studies major seeks to understand the American experience through a multidisciplinary program of study. The requirements for the major are as follows: Nine units of course work are required for the major, at least six of which should be taken at Wellesley College. These courses include AMST 101, which should be completed before the end of the junior year; at least two courses in historical studies; one course in literature; one course in the arts; and one course from any one of the following three areas: social and behavioral analysis; or epistemology and cognition; or religion, ethics, and moral philosophy. Students are also expected to take at least two 300-level courses, one of which should be AMST 317, taken in the junior or senior year. AMST 350, 360 and 370 do not count towards this requirement.

To ensure some concentration in a field of American society and culture, at least three courses should be elected in one department. In consultation with the director, a student may choose to focus her concentration in an area or field, such as law, women, or Asian America, assembling her group of three or more courses in this topic from two or more departments. American Studies majors with an Asian American concentration are encouraged to take courses that specifically address Asian American issues, such as AMST 151, ENG 269, WOST 248, WOST 249.
Within this structure, students are encouraged to explore the diversity of American culture and the many ways to interpret it. Most courses at the College that are primarily American in content may be applied to the American Studies major. American Studies majors are encouraged to take as part of, or in addition to, their major courses, surveys of American history, literature, and art (for example, HIST 203/204, ENG 262/266, ARTH 231/232) and a course on the American Constitution and political thought (for example, POL4 340). In addition, students are urged to take one or more courses outside the major that explore the theory and methods of knowledge creation and production (for example, ECON 103/SOC 190, PHIL 345, POL 199, QR 180, SOC 301).

Departmental Courses
from the Wellesley College Bulletin

AMST 101 Introduction to American Studies

Fisher
An interdisciplinary examination of some of the varieties of American experience, aimed at developing a functional vocabulary for further work in American Studies or related fields. After a brief, intense review of American history, the course will direct its focus towards important moments in that history, investigating each of them in relation to selected cultural, historical, artistic, and political events, figures, institutions, and texts.
Prerequisite: This course is required of American Studies majors and should be completed before the end of the junior year.
Distribution: Historical Studies
Semester: Fall                                        Unit: 1.0

Creef (Women’s Studies)
An interdisciplinary introduction to the study of Asian Americans, the fastest-growing ethnic group in North America. Critical examination of different stages of their experience from the “coolie labor” and “yellow peril” to the “model minority” and struggles for identity; roots of Asian stereotypes; myth and reality of Asian women; prejudice against, among, and by Asians; and Asian contribution to a more pluralistic, tolerant, and just American society. Readings, films, lectures, and discussions.
Prerequisite: None
Distribution: Historical Studies or Religion, Ethics, and Moral Philosophy
Semester: Spring                                    Unit: 1.0

Jeffries
The politics of race and ethnicity in America are constantly shifting, due to demographic, political, and economic transformations. However, fundamental questions about the nature of racial and ethnic divisions in America help frame the investigation of race and ethnicity across historical contexts. Some of the questions that will guide our discussions are: Are racial and ethnic hierarchies built into American political life? Are episodes and regimes of racial injustice the result of economic structure or a shameful absence of political will? How do gender and class influence our understandings of racial and ethnic categorization and inequality? To what extent is racial and ethnic identification a matter of personal choice?
Prerequisite: None
Distribution: Social and Behavioral Analysis
Semester: Fall                                        Unit: 1.0

Widmer (East Asian Languages and Literatures)
NOT OFFERED IN 2008-09. The course introduces a group of fictional writings by Korean American writers. At the same time, it presents a series of articles on issues involving Korean Americans. The point of both sets of offerings is to introduce issues affecting Korean Americans and set them into the spectrum of other aspects of American life. The reflections of class participants will be especially welcome, indeed essential in fleshing out the themes introduced through the readings and other means. Comparisons to developments within Korea will occasionally be introduced, but they are not of primary concern.
Prerequisite: None
Distribution: Language and Literature
Semester: N/O                                       Unit: 1.0

Fisher
An interdisciplinary exploration of the so-called Gilded Age and the Progressive era in the United States between the Civil War and World War I, emphasizing both the conflicts and achievements of the period. Topics will include Reconstruction and African-American experience in the South; technological development and industrial expansion; the exploitation of the West and resistance by Native Americans and Latinos; feminism, “New Women,” and divorce; tycoons, workers, and the rich-poor divide; immigration from Europe, Asia, and new American overseas possessions; as well as a vibrant period of American art, architecture, literature, music, and material culture, to be studied by means of the rich cultural resources of the Boston area.
Prerequisite: None
Distribution: Historical Studies
Semester: Spring                                    Unit: 1.0

TBA
This course offers a set of analytic tools for grappling with the historical and contemporary complexities of Asian American identification and community formation. It will introduce different theoretical frames for exploring the meaningful contours of the terms "Asian American" in relation to other racialized and ethnic groups in the U.S. The goal of this course is to provide students with useful theoretical tools for critically thinking about the ever-shifting terrain of Asian American identification in the wider contexts of orientalism, U.S. imperialism and nationalism, racialization and racism, economic restructuring, transnationalism and other social processes and transformations.
Prerequisite: None. Not open to students who have previously taken ANTH 220.
Distribution: Social and Behavioral Sciences
Semester: Spring                                    Unit: 1.0

Jeffries
This course offers an intensive exploration of “hip-hop” studies where students learn about the history of hip-hop as a social movement and art form comprised of the following four elements: DJing, MCing, break dancing, and graffiti art. Once a common understanding of hip-hop’s genesis and history is established, attention is turned to how hip-hop is studied in the academy. This section of the course features a wide range of interdisciplinary studies of hip-hop music and culture in order to demonstrate the different methodological and theoretical frames used in hip-hop scholarship. In the final section of the course, we focus on hip-hop-related debates and discussions in popular culture, such as black authenticity, non-black consumption of hip-hop, concerns about the new black “hyperghetto,” prison, and the representation of sexism and gender scripts within hip-hop culture.
Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor. Preference given to American Studies majors and juniors and seniors.
Distribution: Social and Behavioral Analysis
Semester: Spring                                    Unit: 1.0

Shetley (English)
Topic for 2008-09: Westerns and Weepers. Westerns and “women’s pictures” were staples of American filmmaking for decades; they were produced side-by-side throughout the heyday of the Hollywood studio system. Yet these two modes of filmmaking seem at first diametrically opposed, in terms of the audiences they address, the world they represent, and the values they espouse. This course will explore these two genres as potent shapers and definers of our ideas about American society, about masculinity and femininity, and about the possibilities of moral action. Among the films that may be studied are: Stagecoach; Red River; Shane; High Noon; Ulzana’s Raid; Unforgiven; Imitation of Life; Stella Dallas; Mildred Pierce; Now, Voyager; All that Heaven Allows.
Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor. Enrollment is limited and preference is given to American Studies majors.
Distribution: Arts, Music, Theatre, Film, Video
Semester: Fall                                        Unit: 1.0

Bedell (Art History)
One of the most visited tourist attractions in the world, subject of thousands of books and articles, adored by millions yet reviled by many intellectuals, Disneyland has occupied a prominent place in American culture since it opened in 1955. This seminar will examine Disneyland as an expression of middle class American values, as a locus of corporatism and consumerism, as a postmodern venue, as a utopia, and as an influence upon architecture and urban design. In a broader sense, we will use Disney to explore the ideals, the desires, and the anxieties that have shaped post-World War II American culture. Students may register for either AMST 317 or ARTH 340 and credit will be granted accordingly.
Prerequisite: Permission of the instructor. Enrollment is limited and preference is given to Art and American Studies majors.
Distribution: Arts, Music, Theatre, Film, Video or Historical Studies
Semester: Spring                                    Unit: 1.0

Prerequisite: Open by permission of the director to juniors and seniors.
Distribution: None
Semester: Fall, Spring                             Unit: 1.0

Prerequisite: By permission of director. Students eligible for honors work and considering doing a thesis during their senior year should plan to identify a thesis advisor, specify their project, and aim to begin work before the end of their junior year. See Academic Distinctions.
Distribution: None
Semester: Fall, Spring                             Unit: 1.0

Prerequisite: 360 and permission of department.
Distribution: None
Semester: Fall, Spring                             Unit: 1.0

===================================================

_{Maintained by Jonathan Imber
Date Created: April 21, 2000
Last Modified: November 4, 2008
Page Expires: September 1, 2009}